Lust Flows Through The Fields Of Alexandria
by Oreganofox
Summary: Rick and Michonne got into a heated argument over Jessie. She needed some time away from him. Daryl manages to comfort her but she wanted more from him. Is this fling temporary?
1. New Feeling

After arguing with Rick about the Jessie situation Michonne took a short walk around the block to clear her head. They weren't a couple but messed around with each other the whole time since the prison. All she could think about was how he found attraction in someone else quickly when it took her longer to earn his trust. She wanted to cry but nothing came out.

Walking towards the gates she saw Daryl coming back from a run with a few other guys. She approached him on his bike.

"Hey" He shuts off the bike.

"What's up?"

"Meet me back here at sunset... Please"

"Why?"

"Just bring your crossbow. Don't keep me waiting" Before he could question her she walked away.

Once settled Daryl went to grab more arrows. He spotted Rick sitting on the couch with his head down. He wanted to say something but decided not to. Once outside the house he was approached by Carol.

"Hey you're going out for another run?" Carol asked.

"Nah. Just for a walk"

"You might want to check in with Michonne. Her and Rick had a heated argument earlier and was pretty upset when she left"

As he approached the gates he saw Michonne standing there with her sword around her back.

"You wanted to talk" She turned to face him.

"Not here. You know somewhere we can go?" He couldn't deny how desperate she sounded.

"...Yeah" He guided her to a large open field he saw earlier. She placed her sword down then laid down on the ground, looking up at the sky. He decided to do the same. She decided to break the silence between them.

"Talk about something"

"About what?" Daryl asked.

"...Anything"

"That guy Aaron followed me today. These people seem very odd for some reason" As he continued talking she was soothed by the sound of his voice.

"Daryl..." She turns her head to look at him as she continued to feel high off of desire. He can hear her breathing begin to slow down by the way her chest went up and down.

"Is it Rick?" Daryl asked. She straddled him and began unbuttoning his shirt slowly.

"Let's not talk about him right now..." She grabbed both of his hands and guided them up her legs.

"I see the way you look at me. I feel the same way about you too" She smacked her butt with his hands. Her seductive voice started raising his body temperature.

"Don't act like you never wanted to touch me" She guides his hands up her tank top.

"I always wanted you as a lover" She whispered. She guided his right hand slowly down to her waist.

"No one has to know... It's just you and me. It's always been you" She kissed his left hand. Before she can move her hips he pinned her to the ground and began kissing her passionately, fully exploring her body with his lips.

Rick needed to apologize for his harsh words. He asked members of the group where she was but they had no idea where she'd be. After checking all around the town he assumed she went for a walk outside the gates. While exploring the woods he suddenly heard moaning coming from a distance. Inching closer to an open field he saw Daryl pleasuring Michonne. Seeing her on top of Daryl and hearing her moan made his blood boil. In a split second he decided to end their little session.

"Daryl..." She panted as their moans grew more intense. Before they were able to reach their peaks a loud gunshot stops them in their tracks. Michonne stood up rushing to put her pants on. Daryl grabbed his crossbow.

"Don't see anyone" Daryl said trying to catch his breath. Instantly a small group of walkers were coming in there direction.

"Just cover me" Completely shirtless she ran towards the walkers, slashing each one. His member grew again watching her kill the walkers.

XXX

Daryl and Michonne walked to an outdoor overhead shower they found behind the house. Once they took off each other's clothes except for their undergarments he helped her wash off the walker gunk. Feeling his hands all over her body and the Luke warm water heightened her desires for him again. She wrapped her legs around Daryl's waist as he hoisted her up against the wall.

"You feel good?" As Daryl continues to kiss her neck she looked directly at Rick who stood around the corner of the house looking furious.

"Never felt better..." She whispered. Michonne rolled her eyes to the back of her head; enjoying much needed pleasure she received from her new lover.

* * *

**This was suppose to be a oneshot but I might add one more chapter with Rick's reaction to this.**


	2. Under Pressure

**A/N: Thanks everyone for your reviews! A guest asked me about the living situation. Michonne lives with Rick and Daryl lives by himself.**

_Rick's POV_

Yesterday Michonne came home from work late. I said we needed to talk; I dreaded telling her what I did but I didn't want to hide anything. We sat on the couch and I told her I kissed Jessie at the welcome party; she slapped me and it went to hell from there. After receiving multiple low blows, in the heat of the moment I told her I had feelings for Jessie. I didn't want to tell her at that moment but I wanted her to feel the same pain I felt. Hearing those words she punched the wall; I never seen her so angry.

She claimed to have given me multiple opportunities to take it to the next level. I was too heated to even comprehend her words. As we kept yelling at each other she then said I was using her as a sex doll because my wife was dead; I didn't know how to respond. Not sure what came over me but once she tried walking away from me I pinned her against the wall. When I looked into her glassy eyes I saw the hurt I caused, so I kissed her.

Oddly she deepened the kiss, wrapping her arms around me, pulling me closer to her. It felt like she was taking my breath away as she stuck her tongue further in my mouth; then we found ourselves on the couch. Then she pushed me away, she said she didn't want anything to do with me anymore and just left.

After that I just sat down to think about what just happened. Then it came to me, when we were trying to find terminus. When Carl was sleep in the car we set up a small fire and began talking. She told me she loved me and wondered if there could be something more between us. I told her I don't know if I could love someone again. She held my hand and said let me show you, and that's when we got ambushed.

Then I also thought about how I have strong feelings for Jessie; I'm basically torn between two women. At that moment I needed to apologize to Michonne. That quickly changed when I found her having sex with Daryl in the fields. It reminded me of Lori and Shane, except Michonne wasn't my women. Later on I went to check on the wall but got caught off guard once again, seeing the two of them embracing each other under the shower head. That look she gave me while Daryl kissed her really angered me even more. She's still mine. It's not over between us.

XXX

The next morning Michonne was able to dodge a bullet since Rick wasn't home. She wanted to take a short walk before going to work; it's still early in the morning and quiet. Approaching the end of the street she saw Rick standing on Jessie's porch shirtless. Judging the sweat dripping from his hair she knew he had sex with her.

"Go straight to hell Rick" She mumbled. Continuing her walk to work she realized she still had feelings for him, but that quickly turned to anger knowing she opened up to him, spreads her legs multiple times for him and he still made no effort to make her his woman. She knew at that moment she needed a way to have the upper hand.

At work she managed to avoid him most of the time. With the look she had on her face Maggie automatically knew something bothered her. When she tried talking to her Michonne didn't say anything about what she saw earlier. During the usual Meeting Deanna made the decision to cut it short.

"Rick your taking a shift in the guard tower" Deanna ordered. After he left she pulled her aside.

"Hey Michonne, why don't you take an hour lunch break, you look like you could use it"

"Yeah" She replied.

Daryl came back from another failed recruiting mission. His mood changed when he saw Michonne sitting on Deanna's porch with her head down and her leg trembling.

"Michonne" When she didn't respond he lifted her head up; only to see her crying. At that moment he grabbed her hand and walked her to his bike. During the ride she had her arms wrapped around Daryl's waist and laid her head on his back; enjoying the softness of the angel wings on his jacket.

When she opened her eyes they arrived at an abandoned shop. After Daryl killed a few lingering walkers they walked through the building to get to the roof; the inside of the shop had wilted flowers scattered everywhere. Once on the roof they sat next to each other, looking out at their surroundings.

"Why did you bring me here?" She asked.

"Don't like seein' you sad" He held her and placed a small sunflower in her palm.

"Would have got ya some flowers but there dead" She smiled at his attempt to be romantic. She moved closer to him and laid her head on his shoulder. After remaining quiet for a while she broke the silence.

"Can I stay at your house?"

"Yeah, Don't worry" Feeling relieved she pulled him down with her and kissed him.

"Thank you" She whispered against his lips. They embraced each other in a deep, passionate kiss.

XXX

Later that night Michonne went to Daryl's house to get ready for another party Deanna put together. She sat on the edge of the bed to fix her shirt.

"Are you sure you don't wanna go?" She asked while adjusting her straps.

"I want do some work on that motorcycle in Aaron's garage. Probably drop by later"

"Fine, just have fun without you" That sarcastic tone didn't sit well with him. He walked closer to her.

"Sayin' earlier wasn't fun?" He questioned. Instead of answering she started tickling him. He pinned her on her back to try tickling her back.

At the party Michonne mingled with a few guests. She seemed happy for the moment until Jessie and Rick walked in together. Rick locked eyes with Michonne for a minute, until he started kissing Jessie.

"Are you alright" The women asked. Michonne walked away and came across a decent bottle of wine. After Maggie finished talking to Glenn she saw her slumped back on the couch with her wine glass. She grabbed the bottle and realized it was half empty.

"Let me take you home" Maggie offered.

"No, I'm fine okay, just gonna take a walk"

Once leaving the party she stumbled around the town. Not getting very far she fell on the steps of a house and took another swig of her drink. Before blacking out she saw someone coming towards her.

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**Who's the mystery person? To be continued…**


	3. Decision

**A/N: Reviews left by Cat and Dark-Supernatural-Angel influenced this chapter.**

_Decision..._

The next morning Michonne woke up on a bed, not knowing where she was. Feeling slightly sick and her head still thumping she sees someone sitting on the side of the bed next to her.

"...Daryl"

"Maggie helped me carry you home last night" She laid her head back down on the pillow.

"You still love him?" He asked.

"I don't know" He grew frustrated with her actions over the past couple of days. Since he has strong feelings for her but doesn't know if her feelings still lie with Rick.

"Do you like being treated this way?"

"Please not now" She put her hand over her forehead.

"Answer me" The angered tone in his voice and the expression on his face scared her.

"...No, but you have to understand where I'm coming from. I gave him every part of me" He didn't want to hear any excuses.

"I'm not gonna let you hurt yourself over him anymore. Don't understand how you're still in love with someone who treats you like property "He got off the bed and gathered some arrows.

"I'm not Rick. We're two different men. I know I can't do the things he does for you"

"Daryl" He stopped and looked at her.

"Do you want a relationship with me?"

"Yeah" He walked away. She's still needed some time to sort out her feelings.

After relaxing for an hour Michonne went back over to Rick's house to pack up her clothes. She told him she planned on living by herself now. Anything she did from now on was none of his business anymore. Afterwards she stared at her sword over the fireplace, reminiscing about everything that has happened up until now.

Rick walked into the living room and saw a bag in her hand. His presence goes unknown as he walked behind her.

"We need to talk" She didn't respond.

"Michonne..." He said softly. She turned around to face him.

"Fine but I don't wanna argue" She's still a little hung over from last night.

When the sun set Rick took Michonne to a big tree a few feet away from the gates. They both sit down but she leaned her head back against the tree and closed her eyes, hoping this little talk doesn't turn into an argument.

"I miss you" Rick said, rubbing her leg. She opened her eyes. He was going to say something else but she cuts him off.

"Don't say anything, just listen to me" She doesn't look at him.

"You take me in, clean me up, we open up to each other, we sleep together, and I bond with your kids. That sounds like a relationship to me. You had my back when everyone didn't trust me, I was the one who told you where Maggie and Glenn were being held, I was the one who came to your aid when the governor had you on the ground half dead" The expression on his face changed.

"When the prison fell, I spent the whole time trying to find survivors. The whole time I thought you were dead; you don't know how many tears I've shed during that time before I found you and Carl at that house. I felt my heat beat again, knowing you were still alive. I was the one who nursed you back to health. The whole time we were out on the road I wanted a better place for everyone to feel safe. I never knew it meant losing someone I cared about, someone I spent all of my time and energy on. Coming here you made me believe we would be together, much happier then what we were out there. Then she comes along..." He looks at her but she continued to look straight.

"I think your feelings are based on you wanting to help her, not because you love her. You can't help someone who doesn't want it. But I know why now, it's because she's your blonde hair, blue eyed princess" He held her hand close to his mouth and kisses her palm, working his way up and kissing each one of her fingers.

"No..." He kissed the back of her hand.

"You're my queen" He kissed her ring finger. Feeling herself slip back into old feelings she pulls her hand away from him.

"Then answer this, If this place falls" She sat up and looked directly at him.

"Are you gonna bring her with us?" He's unsure about that but didn't answer her fast enough. His silence answered her question.

"You made your choice" She stands up and started walking away from him.

"Michonne" She stopped.

"Do you want things to go back to the way they were, before we came here?" He asked. She didn't turn around.

"No... Who knows how long you would have strung me along" She continued to walk away, trying to keep her mind clear.

"You're the only women I'll ever love" Rick mumbled.

XXX

Rick was asleep in bed when he suddenly felt a heavy sensation on his lower body. A hand moved down his chest to his belt.

"I miss you" That whispery tone sounded familiar to him. Opening his eyes Michonne was on top of him, wearing her uniform.

"I miss your body" She unbuttoned her shirt and leaned her head back as he ran his hands up her back to unhooked her bra.

"I want you so bad..." He pulled her close and kissed her hip bone, working his way across her stomach, kissing the other one. He slowly started losing control.

"Tell me you want this" She moaned while unbuckling her belt. He laid her flat on the bed and climbed on top of her.

"I want you" She breathed heavily as he ran his hand up her leg to her inner thigh.

"Your mine" Rick said, unbuttoning her pants.

"I'm yours, nobody else's" She moaned louder as he pulled her pants off.

"Look at me" They look into each other's eyes. He finally had her back.

"I love you Michonne"

"I love you too" As they passionately kissed each other he placed his hand on her private area, and then suddenly heard another voice slowly getting louder.

"Rick wake up" He turned his head and saw Jessie lying next to him; it wasn't real.

"You were breathing funny" He sat up in bed, still sweating, confused about what he'd experienced.

"Gonna take a walk" Before walking out of the bedroom he heard Michonne's voice again.

"I love you Rick"

Daryl was in the garage fixing up some minor things on his motorcycle. He looked up and seen Michonne walk towards the garage with a bag in her hand.

"You alright" She sat on the bike, facing Daryl.

"Yeah" He stood in front of her. She leaned her head against his chest.

"Thank you"

"For what?" He already knew what; he just wanted to hear her say it. She intertwined her fingers with his, looking up at him.

"For opening my eyes" He kissed her forehead. She wrapped his arms around him.

"What do you want?" He embraced her in his arms.

"I want you to be happy" He caressed her back with his hand.

"What do you need from me?" He asked. She looked up at him, gazing into his eyes.

"...Protect me" He understood what she meant. She watched him close the garage doors and dim the lights.

The whole town was silent as Rick continued to walk around. He realized he wanted her back but didn't know what to do. Then he heard a sound coming from the garage. Standing a good distance away from the windows he saw Michonne sitting on Daryl's lap on his bike, with one hand inside her shirt and the other down her pants.

He got more angry hearing her moan and groan repeatedly as his hand went further down into her underwear. Even though he stood away from the windows he could still hear everything.

"Lay down on the bike" He patted the seat. Michonne got off his lap and laid flat on the seat of the bike. She tensed up as he ran his hands down her body.

"I ain't gonna hurt you, alright" She felt his hands go down her pants.

"Yeah, just relax" He kissed her stomach and pulled her pants off. She tried to control her breathing as he took her underwear off.

"Daryl…" He kissed her hip.

"Let me pleasure you this time" She moaned loudly as Daryl went further down.

Seeing him in between her legs was the last straw for Rick. He knew Daryl couldn't handle her for long. Only he knew where all of her pleasure spots were, which Daryl didn't hit any of them. At that moment he knew how to get her back.

"He'll never touch you again" Rick walked away, still hearing her moans echo through his ears.

* * *

**Rick's not going to let her go that easily. Do you think Michonne is over Rick?**


	4. Confrontation

_Confrontation..._

On this particular afternoon things were mellow at work. Luckily she had a break from unnecessary drama since Rick didn't show up for work, but Michonne took full advantage of her lunch break to exercise. In the middle of doing her pull ups she seen Rick coming towards her.

"Hey" He sat on the table and stared at her.

"Wanna join me for lunch?" He asked. She stopped and looked at him.

"Humph, no Jessie today"

"You're the only one I'll ever have time for" She rolled her eyes then continued her workout.

"It's gonna be a while before we get to that point" She said. He stood up and came closer to her. He can feel the tension between the two of them.

"Michonne" She lands on her feet but keeps her distance from him.

"What" She panted, trying to catch her breath.

"Jessie's not important to me, you are" She glared at him. A couple of minutes pass before any other words were said.

"Anyway, you still owe me a lunch date" He grazed her shoulder as he walked past her.

Daryl was in the garage again sorting out parts for his bike. Before he could start working he needed to take care of something first. He took a walk to visit Deanna in her work office.

"Hello Daryl, What can I do for you?" She continued to sort out her papers.

"I want Michonne to have a couple days off from work" She looked up at him.

"Hmm, reason?"

"She needs a break, time to rest" Deanna took in consideration how much hard work she's done the whole time since being here.

"Okay granted"

"Thanks, just don't tell her"

Rick took a walk clear his head. He quickly became infuriated thinking about the times he caught Daryl sleeping with her. Luckily he found him fixing his bike in the garage. He wanted to knock him out now but leaned against the wall to keep himself calm.

"I want you to stay away from Michonne" He continued to fix his bike.

"No, your upset cause you don't have her wrapped around your finger anymore. She deserves someone better"

"And your that man?"

"I think she already made that decision" He smirked at him.

"Never thought my best friend would stab me in the back"

"Our friendship ended after seeing the way you treated her. You took advantage of good woman. She wanted you to protect her but got hurt in the end. I'm the one who dries her tears when she's crying over you. A real man would stand up for his woman, wouldn't be scared to show a women his true feelings. Now I'm protecting her from you" Rick grows more angry, hearing his mindless rambling.

"You think you have her here" He tapped the left side of his chest "But that's still with me and whats in between her legs, that's mine. I still have her mentally and physically. You can't even protect yourself from walkers let alone her. She needs a man not a wuss" Daryl glared at him.

"You think you're a man because your always the leader, but your actions speak louder than your title"

"You want to satisfy her how I do but you can't. That thin needle point of yours isn't capable of it"

"Her scent is all over the seat of my bike, You tell me" Hearing that made Rick's blood boil more.

"Don't worry I'll show you how it's done when she's back in my bed, spreading her legs for me. You can watch and take notes" Rick said, giving him a chuckle. After going back and forth both things between the two of them got more heated.

"It doesn't matter caused i let you borrow her. If she knows what's best for her she'll come back to me. Me and her have a connection to each other, wether you like it or not I'm not going anywhere" Rick said.

"Borrowed huh, Well she's living with me now" Rick clenched his fist tightly.

"And I'll make sure she never comes back to you" Daryl said.

XXX

Michonne was sitting on the porch to get some air when she heard chaos erupting from a distance. After seeing Glenn and Maggie run to the garage she followed them. Running towards the sound she saw Rick punching Daryl against the wall. When they fell to the floor she tried to seperate them.

"Daryl stop" She shouted, trying to separate the two of them. When Daryl aggressively threw his fist back to land a punch he accidentally hit her with his elbow. She was on the her knees, covering her bloody mouth with her hand.

"Michonne!" Rick shouted. He hits Daryl hard causing him to fall on the ground. He held him by his neck and punched him again. When Rick turned around he saw Peter take Michonne away from the scene.

"Get away from her" He shouted. Daryl took the opportunity to hit him in the face, causing him to fall back. Before Daryl could topple him Rick kicked him in the stomach. He managed to punch him a few more times until Abraham stepped in to separate them.

"Go cool off now" He said, guiding Rick away from Daryl.

"If I see you again your dead" He shouted while walking away. Daryl attempted to go after him but Glenn stopped him.

"Don't do it, just worry about Michonne"

"Screw him" Daryl spit some blood on the ground.

Back at Pete's personal office he checked Michonne for any injuries. After cleaning off the cuts on her face he put small bandages over them.

"You have a cut on the inside of your mouth, a bruised nose and some scraps with minor brushing on your face. Should heal up in a few weeks" After putting another bandage on her hand he put an ice pack on the side of her face.

Coming into close contact with her he discretely smelt her, picking up a sweet scent. When she stood up to readjust her shirt he was able to get a sneak peak of her waist. He found him self eying her up and down, memorized by her figure. She thanked him for the help and processes to walk out of the room.

"Beautiful" Pete mumbled while staring at her ass.

Once Michonne helped Daryl clean up she went to look for Rick. She needed to settle things once and for all. Walking further into the woods she spotted Rick standing in the open fields.

"What's your problem" He wiped off his bloody nose and turned around.

"So your living with him now?"

"What i do is none of your business anymore"

"If he had any balls he would of got to you first before I did"

"It's should of been him, at least he's more of man then you" He walked closer to her.

"Before we arrived here, I had you on your back in the car moaning in my ear. Who was the man then"

"What are you trying to say?"

"This little thing you got going on with Daryl won't last. I know once you two have an argument you'll be back in my bed, begging me to take your pain away" She slapped him across the face.

"Stop fucking with me Rick. Out of everyone in the group I opened up the most to you, and for what to find out that what we had wasn't real. Why is it all of the suddenly you want to claim me now like I'm some toy. But you taught me something, you can't trust anybody not even the dude you lay down with every night" She shouted? Rick was offended by her last remark.

"Do you really think that wuss is gonna take care of you? If we were out there now you would be dead already. When this place goes down he'll be saving himself, leaving you behind to be bitten by walkers. You'll see eventually who really loves you"

"You know what I can't do this anymore, fuck you and fuck Jessie. Go live happily together for all I care" Before she could walk away he grabbed her forearm.

"This could go one of two ways baby"

"What are you talking about" He released his tight grip and walked away

"You'll see..."

XXX

Jessie spent the evening over Rick's house to comfort him. When he came out of the shower he stood in front of the mirror to check his face.

"Rick, I don't know where you stand with that woman but I hope you've moved on. She's no good for you, she slept with your best friend right in front of you like a slut" Rick slammed his fist on the dresser.

"Don't talk about her like that!" She was stunned by his reaction but didn't want to anger him further.

"Geez, I'm sorry" He climbed into bed and laid down.

"Do you still love her?" She asked.

"No"

"Am I the only girl you want?"

"Yes"

"That's all I needed to hear" He only told her what she wanted to hear. As she rested her head on his chest he reminisced about all the times Michonne would lay her head on his chest, telling him how much she loved him.

Around night time Daryl walked out of the bathroom and saw Michonne just getting into the bedroom with her work clothes still on.

"Where were you?"

"Just sitting outside by the tree"

"Was he with you?"

"No, just me" She changed into her pajamas and laid down on the bed "Why did you tell him I'm living with you?"

"What are you afraid of? I'm not hiding you from anybody, especially him" He watched her gently press an ice pack against the side of her face.

"I didn't mean to hit you"

"I know" He sat on the edge of the bed next to her, gently rubbing her shoulder.

"Hey" She looked at him.

"Are you my girlfriend?" She took a second to think about everything that's happened. Even knowing her and Rick were no longer a thing she was still scared to move on. She thought about the way Daryl treated her and how he's been there for her this whole time.

"...Yes" He kissed her on the shoulder.

"Good" He laid down next to her and put his arm around her. She relaxed her head on his shoulder.

* * *

**Uh Oh Pete has his eye on her, how will that come into play? How will Rick react to Michonne dating Daryl? **

**Wow, alot of people are into this story. Thank you for all the views and reviews! Stay tuned for more.**


	5. Let's Go Forward With Our Love

**A/N: The chapter title is a song by Terence Trent D'arby.**

_Let's go forward with our love..._

On this mild breezy afternoon things were quiet and mellow in the town of Alexandria. Things seemed to be peaceful for the time being. Once Daryl got out of the shower he saw Michonne getting dressed in her work clothes.

"What are you doing?" He asked, putting on his vest.

"Getting ready for work"

"Deanna gave you a couple of days off" She continued to button up her shirt.

"She never gives days off, what would make her change her mind"

"Cause I asked her too" She stopped and looked at him, caught off guard by his generosity.

"Why did you do that?"

"You need a break, haven't relaxed since we got here"

"Umm, thank you" She took off her work shirt and put on a tank top.

"Don't need too" He gently rubbed her arm "The weather isn't that bad, wanna take a walk?" She agreed. During their walk the back of his hand lightly brushed against hers. He tried to take her hand but she kept pulling away.

"S'okay to hold my hand" His fingertips lightly graze hers. She eventually intertwined her fingers with his.

"I wanna see more of that"

"More of what?" She asked.

"You're smile" She couldn't help but give him a chuckle. She leaned in and kissed him on the cheek.

Glenn meet up with Maggie on her break. After they ate lunch they spotted Daryl and Michonne walking together.

"He finally saved her" Maggie said.

"Yeah. I hope it stays like that"

"Me too. She's been through enough"

Daryl wanted to spend more time with his new girlfriend but realized he had to work. Once they arrived at the gates he looked into her glowing brown eyes. He sensed she was still stressed about yesterday.

"Try to get some rest"

"I can't sleep" He ran his hand through her dreads.

"Try" She nodded. He kissed her on the lips and slowly pulled back. She responded by returning the kiss. After locking the gate she sat down on one of the tables to take in the scenery. For once the feeling of sadness was temporarily gone.

XXX

Carl awoken to Judith's frantic crying. Things at the Grimes house haven't been the same since Michonne moved out. He picked her up and tried to rock her back to sleep with no success. He walked out to the living room and seen his dad sitting on the couch.

"Is she okay?" Rick asked.

"I don't know. I've fed her, tried to rock her to sleep but nothing worked. I'll take her out for a walk"

Before he walked out the door he looked back at his father, noticing the sad expression on his face. Approaching the end of the street he spotted Michonne sitting on one of the tables. He hasn't spoken to her in a couple of days so this was the perfect opportunity.

"Hey" He approached her with a warm smile. He spotted the cuts and bruises on her face.

"Did my dad hit you?"

"No, Daryl hit me by accident when I tried to break up a fight" He nodded. The baby started fidgeting around in his arms.

"For some reason Judith won't stop crying"

"Here, give her to me" When she held the baby close to her she immediately became quiet and wrapped her arms around Michonne's neck, pressing her cheek next to hers.

"She misses you, we both do" She kissed the baby on the cheek.

"I miss you guys too" She patted Carl on the top of his hat.

"He's not home?"

"No, at work"

Michonne and Carl took a walk back to the house. She laid Judith in her crib and tucked her in. Going into Rick's bedroom she retrieved her sword above the dresser. Looking back at the bed brought up old memories of when she woke up to him and the kids every morning, but that changed knowing Jessie sleeps next to him every night. The scent of sex still lingered strongly in the room. Carl stood in the doorway and noticed how sad she looked.

"What's wrong?"

"Nothin" She walked up to him.

"If you ever wanted to talk, I'm at Daryl's house" Carl looked at her.

"See you around" She said. Before she walked away he spoke up.

"Wait" He signed "I'm sorry for what my dad did to you. If i had seen it coming i would of stopped it. Just wish things could go back to the way they were, when you and my dad were happy with each other" She turned around and kneeled down to him.

"It's not your fault. I know things between Rick and I are bad but my relationship with you and Judith doesn't have to suffer because of it" Carl felt happy she still wanted to be around. He gave her a hug.

"We'll always be a family" He said.

"I appreciate that" She smiled. His words were heart warming but she knew deep down their family would never be the same again.

"Just remember this, Jessie could never replace you" They both laughed together.

"I love you"

"I love you too Carl" The baby made a cute giggling noise.

"That includes you too Judith" She tilted his hat forward then left the house. Walking back to her resting spot she felt good knowing her relationship with Carl was still there, but it broke her heart that Carl didn't understand how bad his father treated her.

XXX

Rick went out on his lunch break and saw Michonne sitting outside. He hasn't been able to get her off his mind since she moved out. He was supposed to be meeting up with Jessie for lunch but wanted to see her first. She looked up and saw him coming her way and took a deep breath, preparing for the worst.

"You alright?"

"Yeah"

"Did Pete do anything to you?" She cocked her eyebrow, wondering why he sounded so protective all of the sudden.

"No" She signed "i'm sorry that I hit you"

"Don't worry about it. Why didn't you come into work?"

"I asked for time off" She lied to him to keep things from escalating further "Is that all you wanted?"

"No, we need to finish talking"

"What's left to say" She thought about the talk earlier with Carl. She couldn't risk losing her relationship so she agreed to talk. They took a walk to a secluded house a few blocks away from the workplace. Rick sat down on the couch.

"Wanna sit down?" He asked. She leaned against the wall.

"I'm fine right here" Rick takes a second to think before opening his mouth.

"I never ment to hurt you"

"Well, yeah you did. Since the beginning I was just an outlet for you"

"That's not true. You think I wanted to hurt you out of all people. You're acting like I'm in love with this women but I'm not"

"I don't believe you"

"We'll always have a special connection with each other. You're the only woman I'll ever care for Michonne, you have my heart"

"You say that now but you never knew how to love me the way I loved you" She put her hands over her face.

"I want you back. You know how much I love you"

"I did love you for a long time, but I can't feel the same way about you anymore"

"Michonne" He came close and tried to hold her.

"Stop" She pulled away from him because unsettling memories started to fill her head again "I just want to be civil with each other, for Carl and Judith"

"I want that too. You can see them whenever you want"

"Good" Before she walked away he pulled her close to him, wrapping his arm around her waist.

"When you fall, I'll be there to pick you up" He said close to her ear. He caressed the bruise on the side of her cheek with his thumb. She knew he would eventually find out about her dating Daryl but now wasn't the right time to tell him.

XXX

A thunderstorm keep everyone in town inside for the night. Michonne sat on the side of the bed, looking out at the rainfall. A shirtless Daryl came up to the bedroom with a few candles.

"Lay down" He sat on the bed and lit each candle, placing them on the dresser.

"In a minute" He could tell by the way she distanced herself her mind was racing about something. He sat in the middle of the bed and wrapped his arms around her, pulling her back towards him. He kissed her on the shoulder a few times to relax her.

"Let me have control" He untied her dreads.

"I know your scared, not knowing how it feels to be loved" He kissed her shoulder. He held her tighter. The scent of raspberries suddenly filled the air. Inhaling the scent deeper and feeling Daryl's hand travel down to her thighs sent her body to another state. Something told her to take this to the next level but another part wasn't sure yet. He held her hand up to his mouth and kissed the back of it.

"What we have isn't lust" He continued caressing her neck with his cool breath while running his hands up her inner thighs.

"I need you to trust me" She felt him sucking on her neck as he put both hands into the sides of her night gown, lightly squeezing her boobs. The feeling of love and desired took over her mind. She held his hand up to her mouth and kissed his fingers. He leaned her head back to kiss her.

He laid her down on the pillow and continued to kiss her neck. She felt tingles all throughout her body as his hair ran down her skin. When he ran both his hands up her nightgown into the sides of her underwear she felt her private area start to thump. With this new feeling getting more intense she couldn't hold back any longer.

"...Make love to me" His heart dropped hearing her say that. They've been having sex but he felt she wasn't connecting with him on a romantic level. He came up and looked into her eyes.

"Are you sure?" He moved her dreads to the side. To him the look in her eyes and that subtle look on her face said she was ready to let him in.

"Yes" He kissed her on the top of her forehead then pulled the sheets over them. They embraced each other in a deep kiss as the thunder continued to rumble outside.

_Come and get this_

_Waited all my life for your touch and your soft kiss_

_And life will never be the same_

_While you moan and groan, I hear your voice call my name_

_Holdin' your body like a plastic moldin'_

_Your soul I'll be controlling_

_As the candles burn, we toss and we turn_

_From night to day, all our pleasures we learn_

_Come and play with me_

_Tonight's our night baby_

* * *

**Lyrics used: Boyz II Men - 50 Candles**


	6. Choice

**A/N: Sorry for the late update, been busy with summer time pain! Thank you for the awesome reviews.**

_Choice..._

It took Daryl a little longer then usual to wake up since he was still sore from last night. After he got dress he looked at Michonne, who was still sleeping. He walked over to her and gently kissed her shoulder, pulling the sheets over her exposed skin. He was happy to finally have his women by his side. The two of them started out as enemies but over time he slowly started opening himself up to her which in return made her soften up towards him, leading to them becoming best friends. Walking out the door he was approached by Glenn. He wanted to catch up with Daryl and talk to him about everything that happened up until now.

"How's Michonne?" Daryl sits next to him on the porch.

"She's alright, sleepin"

"Are you guys a couple now?"

"Yeah we are" Glenn smiled at him.

"How do you feel about her?"

"I care about her a lot but she not giving me all of herself to me. Whenever it's me and her she's affectionate, which is good but she acts closed off and sad. Every time i look at her i don't feel the love at all. Then when Rick comes around her she completely shuts down. He grabs her, tries to touch her and she doesn't stop him. Even when I ask her a question about how she feels about him she can't give me an answer. I want her to trust me"

"You need to give her some time. She did everything for Rick, even bonded with his kids and just swept her under the rug when we got here. I don't know what happened to him. She has to be the one to make the decision to cut Rick off." The two of them became quiet.

"I know now i can't go back to being the same person I was out there" His facial expression changed. Glenn needed to figure out a way to let him know he wasn't alone in this.

"You should talk to her about everything you just told me and ask for the truth"

"...Alright"

Later that day Carol meets with Rick outside by the abandoned house to talk about their alliance. She noticed something was different about him.

"So Daryl's out?" She asked.

"Yeah. We'll get by without him"

"What about information?"

"Jessie knows where the maps to this place are, just give me a few days" He gave her extra ammo for her gun.

"What about Michonne?" She seen the look on his face change. He wanted to save her but he needed her to see first hand that Daryl couldn't protect her.

"Don't do that to her, everyone in the group has the right to be saved including her" Carol didn't want Daryl out of the alliance since he played a strong role. She would talk to him on her own time.

"Just worry about lying low, I'll handle Michonne"

"What are you going to tell her?" He walked away without answering her. His silence made Carol felt uneasy about the situation. To her it sounded like he was going to hurt her, but she still wanted to keep the alliance intact.

XXX

Rick was assigned to a shift in the guard tower. Looking through the scope of the gun he spotted Michonne sitting down on the open lawn, which made him smile. He seen Daryl approach her from the side. When Rick saw him wrapping his arms around her he loaded a bullet into the chamber and cocked the gun. He aligned the crosshairs of the scope at Daryl's head and relaxed his finger on the trigger.

"Rick, Rick" Someone called. He lowered the gun and heard Glenn calling his name.

"We need to talk" Glenn took Rick to the supply van to talk. They sat quiet for some time before Rick spoke up.

"What is this about?"

"You and Michonne" Rick signs.

"I miss her"

"Do you miss her or the sex?" Rick glared at him

"What are you saying?"

"If I treated Maggie the way you treated Michonne I would never want her to speak to me again... Did you want this place?"

"No, but I wanted her to be happy so I put my feelings aside"

"I don't get it, Almost every day i would hear you say how much you loved her. She would have the biggest smile on her face whenever she was around you. Remember that night in the church, when you held her close to you on the altar and said she's you're queen and you wanted her to be by your side. I can see why she'd be pissed. Why would you treat someone like that. All of this makes me wonder, did you ever want Michonne to be yours?"

"She's still my girl. My kids love her as much as I do. Daryl doesn't want her, just using her to get himself a piece of ass" Glenn shook his head in disgust.

"What does Jessie have that she didn't?" He didn't answer.

"Who are you in love with?"

"...Michonne" Rick stood up.

"There's a lot I don't speak on but this hits home for me. Michonne was depressed the whole time after that welcome party, every one could tell she wasn't the same. You were the reason she drinked so much. Now that Daryl is in her life..."

"I don't have to listen to this"

"Then don't, just look up and see that Daryl makes her happy" Rick clenched his fist and walked away. He would talk to Michonne later but for now he had to process what Glenn said.

XXX

After Michonne took her bath she changed into her pajamas and laid next to Daryl on the bed. He becomes uneasy as she starts messing his pants.

"What are you doing?" She pulled the band back.

"It's okay" She lifted his shirt up and kissed his stomach. She pulled his member out of his underwear and started stroking it.

"Michonne stop" He pushed her hand away. She sat up on her knees.

"What!" She said in an aggravated tone. Daryl could see this was the was she acted when she slept with Rick, which sadden him. He couldn't grasp how badly Rick changed Michonne.

"Don't feel like you need to have sex with me in order to please me. Just being around you makes me happy" He put his member back into his pants.

"Did you tell Rick, bout us dating?"

"...No" Daryl signed, feeling frustrated with her.

"You still want him?"

"...No I don't"

"Then what is it? I can't see how your still in love with someone who hurt you" She puts her head down, hiding behind her dreads.

"It's my fault why you two aren't friends. I thought I was the one who could keep the tension at ease" He pulls the dreads hanging from the side of her face back, revealing her eye.

"That's between me and him. You didn't do anything wrong, you don't have to protect me from him" He signed. She could tell he didn't trust her at all.

"I need to know that you're on my side completely. I don't want half of you" She moved closer to him.

"I am by your side"

"i don't feel it" She flipped her dreads back and locked eyes with him.

"...I've always been on your side since we started talking to each other. You always made time for me, no matter how busy you were. Me and you always had a connection with each other, I just don't wanna get hurt by someone i care about again" He gently rubbed her hand.

"You're the only man I wanna be with" She leaned in and kissed him on the lips. As she pulled away he pulled her close to give her another kiss.

In the middle of the night Michonne couldn't sleep. The thought of going back to work overwhelmed her. Sitting up in the bed she looked at her uniform jacket on the wall next to her. Holding the jacket in her hands she rubbed the symbol attached to the arm with her thumbs. Thinking about everything Rick and her established together as a team she realizes this drastic decision has to be done in order to give Daryl all of her love.


	7. Moving on

_Moving on..._

All the thoughts about the soon to be aftermath of the decision to quit her job with Rick caused her to get a limited amount of sleep. She couldn't figure out why this bothered her so much. Daryl turned on his side, noticing Michonne sitting up in the bed.

"It's six in the mornin" He yawned.

"Couldn't sleep. I can make you breakfast"

"You don't have too, I'll grab something quick before I leave" She was use too cooking Rick's breakfast early, but was slowly trying to adjust on a different way of living. When she laid back down she moved a little closer to Daryl. He gave her a little smile and readjusted the covers over them.

Usually on this particular morning Rick and Michonne would work this shift together. Walking up the street she seen Rick waiting for her at their usual spot, but instead took a short cut to avoid changing her mind. Waiting no time she pulled Deanna aside to talk.

"So, what can I do for you"

"I was wondering if I can switch jobs" She says in a neutral tone.

"Reason? You're really good at guarding the town" She takes a deep breath

"I just need a change, that's all" She avoided telling her the real reason. Deanna flipped through some pages in her job book.

"Well there is a one more spot open for supply runs, is that okay?" Michonne wrapped her head around the fact that she would no longer be Rick's right hand woman but still agreed to take the job.

"Okay you, Abraham, Glenn, and Tara are the ones in charge of supply runs" Deanna handed her a list of supplies to pick up.

"Food is running low, can you handle getting what we need?" She nodded.

"Turn in your uniform" After she took off her jacket she held onto it for a minute. Everything from how they use to work together as a team to all the things that happened since being here was hitting her all at once. But she knew if she wanted to give Daryl all of her and have his back like a girlfriend should this needed to be done. She handed Deanna the jacket and walked out of her office. Maggie was helping Glenn pack the supply can with extra ammunition when she noticed Michonne coming towards her.

"You're off work today?" She asked, noticing she had her sword on her back.

"No, I do supply runs now"

"Sweet" Glenn smiled.

"Good, we got another set of muscles coming with us" Abraham said, giving Michonne a pat on the shoulder. Maggie kissed her man goodbye and everyone proceeded to get in the van.

Rick notice Michonne leaving with Glenn and the others but didn't think anything of it. Before his night shift began he went to Deanna's office to talk about adding Michonne to the night job.

"Hello Rick" He sat down in the chair.

"I want Michonne to take an extra shift with me during the night hours"

"I'm sorry, I can't do that"

"She's my partner, we already discussed it" Judging by the look on his face and the assertive tone in his voice, this conversation wasn't gonna go anywhere.

"I'm not giving her an extra shift with you" She closed her drawer.

"Why not?"

"Because she doesn't work security anymore" Rick get his heart drop to his stomach in disbelief that she quit without telling him.

"She turned her uniform in this morning. I'll work on finding you another partner, alright?"

"Don't need one" He stormed out of the office, hitting the wall on the way out the front door. Rick felt confused about her quitting, to him they were still a team and always talked about things. That quickly turned to anger when he thought about Daryl trying to turn Michonne against him. To him, Daryl was trying to start something he couldn't finish.

XXX

After work Rick went home and grabbed a drink from the fridge, noticing Carl sitting by the window.

"You okay?"

"No dad I'm not" He noticed a shift in his tone.

"What's on you mind?"

"Like you ever cared" Carl stood up.

"What was that?"

"You heard me. You've been sitting around here acting all depressed and never once asked how I was. You never thought once how your stupid decision would effect us. This is your fault, you brought this on yourself" He started raising his voice.

"Watch it Carl" He slammed his fist on the counter.

"Screw you. There's a lot of things I won't speak up but this hurts me, so your gonna listen to me instead of you listening to yourself. Michonne did everything for you, took care of Judith, the group, you. She saved your life, she did nothing but love you and for what to find out you never loved her in the first place"

"You don't know how I feel about her or our personal relationship"

"I know enough to know that you used a good women. Do you really think we could of survived this long without her? She has cuts and bruises on her face because of you" Tears started rolling down Carl's face.

"Out of all the men in the group I was supposed to look up to my dad, the leader, the good guy, the one man Michonne ever had a romantic connection with and you screwed her over look she meant nothing to you. I look after her more then you do and that's what she expected from you, but you failed her. She's like a mother to me and you knew that. And If you expect me to accept Jessie with open arms you're dead wrong" His face started to turn red.

"I want Michonne back dad. Judith misses her too. I want our family back"

"Carl..." He walked over to him and tried to console him but he pushed him away.

"You took the only family i had left away from me. When mom died... I was numb for a long, didn't care about anyone or anything time until she came around. Even though I was so mean to her in the beginning she never gave up on me. Now, things won't be the same between us" He leaned against the counter and continued to break down. Rick managed to hold his son but Carl kept trying to break free by pushing and screaming.

"Get away from me! I hate you" With one more forceful push Carl managed to break free from his grip and ran out of the front door, ignoring his father words.

XXX

Michonne is sitting on the porch swing, enjoying the cool night breeze when a crying Carl approaches her.

"Carl, what happened?" He just stood there with his head down. She knew he had an argument with Rick.

"Come here" He came closer and embraced her. Hearing his muffled cries tugged at her heart.

"I don't wanna lose our friendship. I appreciate you and everything you've done for the family..." He held her tighter. Knowing Carl is fighting hard for her to stay around made her feel more resentment towards Rick.

"Me, you, and Judith are still a team. I love you too much to let you go" He gave her a kiss on the cheek.

"I love you" He said with a warm smile. She smiled back at him and dried his tears. Suddenly Carl's stomach growls loudly; she forgot about how bad of a cook Rick was.

"Come on, I'll make you something to eat"

Michonne prepared a plate of homemade macaroni salad, with a tall glass of peach juice. She sat on the couch next to Carl, laughing at him quickly devouring his late night snack.

"I don't wanna go home" He didn't want to go back to a heated environment.

"Carl..."

"Please, I just want to stay here for the night" He pleaded.

"Okay you can sleep here, I'll go get the blanket"

By the time she came back with the sleep gear he was already laying down on the couch. She gently placed the blanket over him and shared a moment with him before he went to sleep. Michonne met Daryl back in the bedroom; little to her knowledge Carl didn't go to sleep right away. Knowing she had a new man in her life he felt obligated to keep her safe from getting hurt by another man. He tip toed towards her room to do a bit of spying; luckily the door was slightly cracked.

"Is Carl okay?"

"Yeah, he's asleep on the couch" She sat on the front edge of the bed.

"I switched jobs today, I do supply runs now" He wanted to be happy but felt concerned about her returning to that environment, since she hasn't been herself lately.

"You sure about that?"

"Yeah, you sound concerned" He walked up to her.

"Just don't want you to get hurt" She chuckled and held both of his hands.

"I have these hands keeping me safe from harm. And this new job means more time I get to spend with you" She stood up and kissed him.

Carl watched Daryl embrace Michonne in his arms, looking at the way he kiss her with such passion, and how gently he handled her. He could see the chemistry between the two of them. Tip toeing back to the couch he tried figuring out why his dad hurt Michonne the way he did. Why is this Jessie girl more important to you then Michonne? Old memories of their home life started to cloud his mind, the way he carried Judith into the room to wake Michonne up, her warm motherly smile, and hearing her voice every day. He wanted her back home but not if that cost her happiness. Carl felt the need to step up and become a better man, since his dad wasn't capable of fulfilling that role anymore.

Back at Jessie's house she told Pete about wanting to get a divorce, which started an argument. As they kept going back and forth with each other he walked out of the house to avoid hitting her again. He sat on the bench outside to cool off and collect his thoughts. Looking out in the distance a house caught his attention; he might have found a new person of interest to pursue.


	8. No Turning Back

**A/N My deepest apologies for the wait. The first part of this chapter is a flashback, to give you some background on Daryl and Michonne's friendship and how he came to care for her like he does now. It's a mix between season 4 and 5.**

**Flashback**

Daryl went outside to smoke a cigarette. Once he took another puff Michonne suddenly came across his mind. For some time after she arrived at the prison she went out on supply runs often, helped out around the garden, or did what was necessary to keep the gate up around the prison. Then Rick started spending more time with her all of the sudden. Since then Daryl noticed her priorities were starting to shift. Everything she did Rick always involved himself.

Supply runs and whatever free time they had not involving upkeep for the prison were the times Daryl and Michonne spent time building their friendship, before Rick came into the picture, which frustrated him. Whenever he asked her to go out on a run with him she would always say she's busy with other tasks, he knew she was just gonna spend her time having sex with Rick. The way he would touch her gave Daryl a sign he was just after something else, not love. He gave her the benefit of the doubt that she would find her way back but was losing hope as the days went by.

Earlier in the day Daryl gathered up a few group members to go search an abandoned supermarket for supplies. When the time came to leave he noticed Michonne wasn't here, considering she said she would go and he told her what time to be here.

"Anyone seen Michonne?"

"I saw her earlier, going down to the boiler room. Rick was with her" Tyreese answered. A frustrated Daryl went downstairs to go look for her. Coming across a closed door he heard noises coming from behind it.

He knocked on the door "Michonne, come on we have leave"

"Ahh, I'm getting closer" He heard pounding noises and her intense moaning.

He knocked again with more aggression "Michonne!"

"I'll...be out in a minute" Rick was pissed he couldn't get Michonne or himself off in time. When she came out of the boiler room Daryl saw her drenched in sweat and out of breath. She avoided eye contact with him. Rick put his pants on and came out too.

"Don't keep her out too long" Rick said. Daryl glared at him, completely disgusted.

Daryl went out to the car and checked the oil. A couple minutes later Michonne approached him, not knowing what to say. He looked up at her for a quick sec then focused back on the engine.

"We're about a quarter low" He said.

"Is it still in tower three?"

"Yeah"

"I'll go get one" She walked away

"Hey, I'm glad your coming" She turned around, giving him a little smile.

"Where else would I be?" He wiped his hands off.

"...The boiler room" Her smile went cold, feeling offended.

"What are you trying to say" He wanted to say that Rick and hers relationship isn't real but didn't want to spoil the chance of her finally coming along on a run. They caught eyes for a brief minute then he closed the hood. She leaned against the window.

"He doesn't run my life you know"

"I know" He walked away. There was a lot of things he wanted to say to her but now wasn't the right time. She couldn't figure out why he acted so distant, but knew her actions had something to do with it.

The group members scavenged through the supermarket, looking for anything edible or useful. After carefully searching for half an hour Daryl went to check on the others. Coming across the fourth isle he seen Michonne hunched over the cart with her head down.

"Hey" He lightly tapped her on the shoulder "Did you find anything?"

"Yeah" He looked through her cart and saw a variety of canned food and water bottles. He spotted the box of lube and condoms but didn't want to argue over it. For the rest of the time they were at the market it seemed like Daryl and Michonne were connecting with each other like they use too.

Later that night Daryl lied in bed, staring up at the ceiling. He tried to block out the noises coming from the other cell but Michonne's moans were ringing through his ears; a mix between pain and pleasure. After an hour the noises stopped. He went to the kitchen and saw Michonne leaned against the wall, sweating and breathing hard; this wasn't the first time he saw her like that.

"Take this" He handed her his red cloth and a bottle of water. He sat next to her, preparing to take a risk of letting her know what was on his mind.

"You must like feeling like this" He said. She leaned her head back.

"Feeling like what?"

"Used up" She turned her head in his direction.

"If your gonna take shots at me just leave" She wiped her face off more.

"Relax I'm just trying to talk to you, since this is the only time I see you anymore"

She signed "Just because I spend time with Rick doesn't mean your any less important to me" He didn't want to sound harsh but he had to say what was on his mind.

"Three days ago, I asked you to help me seal off one part of the tombs. You said Rick needed you to fend some walkers off the fences. When I went outside I saw both of you in the suv. Guess sex with Rick means more to you than our friendship" Things got quiet between them. She didn't want to admit he was right about certain things. Both Rick and Daryl were important to her. Still, she didn't understand why he cared so much about what she did. Then the thought hit her.

"Do you have feelings for me?" She asked. Before he could answer the train of blood running down her leg stopped him.

"Come on, you need to wash off"

"I'm fine" He reached his hand out which she surprisingly took. He walked with her to the shower.

"I'll wait out here" He said. She nodded. As she washed herself off he kept thinking about what was happening to him. He never cared this much about a woman, let alone tell someone how he feels on a personal level. If his brother were still alive seeing him like this he would call him a suck up, but Daryl didn't care what anyone else thought. After drying off she met up with him at the entrance. They couldn't stop looking at each other.

"Can we hang out tomorrow?" He asked. She smiled and nodded her head.

"Yeah" She gave him a kiss on the cheek

"You're still my best friend" She said in his ear. She wrapped her arms around him, feeling his facial hair brush against her neck. He slowly hugged her back, gently rubbing her back. He wasn't use to showing affection, but his chest felt warm. He didn't want to let go of her. When she heard Rick call her name she let go of him and went back to his cell. He rolled his eyes and sat outside to enjoy the night air.

XXX

Father Gabriel and Michonne were sitting on the stairs outside the church talking when she heard rustling coming from the woods. As she approached the noise closer it was dark and she couldn't see anything which makes her heart beat faster. Gripping on her sword tighter, ready to attack Daryl emerges from the trees. She signs in relief and gave him a little smile, which quickly fades.

"You alright?" Daryl asked. A tear rolled down her cheek.

"I thought you died" She walked closer to him, still in disbelief. They both wrapped their arms around each other. For him this was too close of a call so he wanted to take this chance to let her know how he felt. He lifted her chin up and planted a kiss on her lips, slowly pulling back. Her heart beats suddenly became deeper, like a chest being unlocked. She slowly inch her lips closer to his but pulled back, her heart said yes but her mind said no. When their lips touched again she quickly backed away from him, feeling her heart race with sweat dripping down her forehead. She was committed to Rick, but couldn't deny that something was there between them.

"Michonne, come here" She heard Rick's voice in the distance and shook her head no to Daryl, quickly walking back to the church. Rick noticed something was up with her.

"What's wrong, you feel hot" Rick touched her face.

"I'm fine, I just wanna lay down"

Daryl approached the church and saw Michonne hugging Rick against the wall.

"I love you" Rick said, kissing her on the side of the neck. Both Daryl and Michonne locked eyes with each other.

"I love you too" She kissed Rick on the cheek, moving to his lips. Daryl walked away feeling alone. At this moment, She knows he has feelings for her; the cards were in her hands now.

XXX

**Present Day**

Michonne and Daryl were sitting outside on the porch swing, to enjoy their time before work. Things between the two of them have been a little distant because of the incident that happened yesterday. After thinking about the things that were said Michonne realized she was wrong.

"I'm sorry for yesterday" She relaxed her head on his shoulder.

"I don't want you to feel like you have use your body to make me happy. A relationship doesn't always revolve around sex. I want us to connect mentally too" He put his arm around her.

"I think we should hold off on the sex for a while, until I know you're ready" She looked up at him. This is a drastic change. She's use to having sex around the clock, and for them to suddenly stop. She wasn't sure how this would affect her but was willing to give it a try for their relationship.

"Alright I'll try"

"Thank you" He kissed her on the forehead. She planted a kiss on his lips, not pulling back. Once they became more passionate he noticed she pulled back and let go of his hand.

"What's wrong?" He rolled his eyes when he saw Rick coming up the porch.

"You stood me up yesterday, where were you?" Rick asked. Daryl grew frustrated at her for shutting down again.

"Can we do this later"

"No, me and you are gonna talk now" When he grabbed her hand she stood up and forcefully pulled back.

"Don't put your hands on me again" She said. When Rick moved in closer to her Daryl broke the space between them.

"Leave" Rick turned his attention to Daryl.

"This is between me and her" Daryl stepped closer to Rick. Things between the three of them got quiet.

"Daryl" Someone called. He looked past Rick and saw Aaron standing there.

"We have to leave early, Deanna's orders" Daryl looked at Michonne and wrapped his arm around her, kissing her on the lips.

"I'll be home later tonight" That's all he said before leaving with Aaron.

Rick and Michonne took a walk through the woods to find a secluded place. Seeing an abandoned car she sat on the front hood, crossing her arms. They were staring at each other, staying silent until someone talked first.

"I've heard your dating someone" Rick said.

"Where'd you hear that from?"

"Don't worry about it. Who is it? It better not be Daryl, cause me and you both know that's not what you want"

"Well i am dating Daryl" Rick walked closer to her.

"So you quit your job without telling me and now i find out your dating Daryl" She pushed him away.

"I don't have to tell you anything. My business isn't yours anymore. You wanted Jessie now you got her, so go and be with your girl"

"I am with my girl, she's right infront of me"

"Shut up Rick you're full of it"

"Oh I'm full of it. I'm not the one settling for less" She cocked her eyebrow.

"Daryl's a better man for me and you know it"

"Truth is you don't know what you want. Me and you have chemistry together, Daryl can't take that from us"

She signed "Doesn't matter anymore"

"He can barley satisfy you let alone feed you. You can eat rats all you want, don't come to me begging for food"

"I don't need you for anything, I can take care of myself"

"You need me just as much I need you. I've always taken care of you, your still alive because of me" She turned her head to him, completely pissed.

"You can't be serious. The only you've done was use me to your advantage, and that was when I first arrived at the prison. You were ready to send me out on my ass after I helped you save Maggie and Glenn, but I know now why you've kept me around this long. What about when I twisted my foot were you there in my cell trying to take care of me? No, Beth was. You didn't even bother to come check up on me. The whole time I've been around I always been the one taking care of you whether it was sex, your kids, going out on supply runs, and supporting you, physically and emotionally. Even when we had no food I always gave up what we had just so you and your kids could eat. I practically went hungry for you, only to get nothing in return but a fuck and a pat on the shoulder" She paused "You never done anything for me, only for yourself"

"So that's it huh...you're giving up on our family, giving up everything we have together"

"No, I'm giving up on you. I exerted all my energy into you. I'm done" They glared at each other. She wanted to walk away but couldn't, he needed to hear something else that bothered her.

"I realized something, the way you lured me into your bed i did the same to Daryl, and that's not me. I lost myself for a while, until he brought me back. Daryl's the one I want to love, we tried but you chose the other woman instead of me. What you don't know is Daryl took care of me emotionally whenever you weren't around" Rick signed, he had enough of listening to her. Anger took over.

"You think people care about you but they fear you. In the end I was the only friend you had. I wanted you to be apart of my alliance with Carol, but I know now you'll just bring us down. When Alexandria falls you'll go down with them. You chose this. I'm not your friend, your partner, or your lover. You're nothing but a slut to me. Don't expect me to come save you anymore, cause you're not worth it anymore" He walked away.

Michonne felt the wind being knocked out of her chest. They were just words but his still cut deep. She had to come to the realization that there friendship was over. On the walk back to Alexandria Michonne eyes kept watering, she just wanted Daryl to wrap his arms around her to take away the hurt. Carl saw Michonne and tried to talk to her.

"Hey Michonne are you..." When she walked past him he could see the tears rolling down her cheeks. He knew his dad said something to her again. If she's hurting he was too. She sat in the back of the van, putting her head against the door.

"What's wrong?" Glenn asked. She shook her head and more tears starting falling down her face.

"Need a drink?" Abraham said, taking a sip of whiskey. When she grabbed the bottle Glenn shook his head no, to remind her not to go back down that road.

"Maybe you should stay here" Maggie said.

"No I'm going, let's get out of here..." She finally broke down. Maggie wrapped her arms around Michonne. Glenn's heart sank to his stomach, seeing her this upset. Glenn and Maggie looked at each other, not knowing what else they could do.

XXX

Rick put Judith to sleep when heard a knock on the door. Looking through the hole he seen Jessie, who had a black eye and a few bundled up papers in her hand; they were the drawings of Alexandria's walls. They went to the bedroom where he put an ice pack over her eye.

"What happened?" He fixed the cover on the bed.

"Pete hit me when I asked him for a divorce"

Rick stood there and looked at her. He didn't expect things to go this far or for her to catch feelings so quickly. This wasn't apart of the plan. He had the maps already but couldn't understand why he still cares for this woman. He has more feelings for Michonne then Jessie. She walked up to him.

"I appreciate you more than I do my own husband. I'm hoping he'll finalize the divorce soon, because" She paused.

"Because what?" He asked.

"I wanna be with you" She looked up at him then put her head down. He put his hand on her shoulder.

"I won't let him hurt you again, I promise" They embraced each other and shared a kiss.

Daryl wasn't home yet so Michonne took a shower and went to bed. A few hours later the bedroom door creaked open.

"Michonne, are you awake?" She didn't respond. The man tip toed over to her bed and carefully unbuttoned her shirt halfway. He lightly squeezed her breast while gently pinching her hard nub with his teeth. Michonne immediately jolted up after feeling a sharp tugging pain. She saw her a few of her buttons undone and her nub sticking out. Looking around there was no one in the room, the door was closed and the windows were shut.

"Daryl" She called out, but with no answer. She for up and grabbed her sword off the wall, quickly pulling it out of the scabbard. Walking down the hallway she looked around for any signs of a burglary, but came up with nothing. When she heard the front door open she hid behind the wall. Jumping from behind and holding her sword taunts she was relieved to see Daryl.

"Woah, what's wrong?" He asked.

"Nothin, just forgot you worked late"

"Come on, let's go to bed" He gave her a kiss to calm her down and went upstairs. She took one last look around the downstairs area for any signs. She decided to keep the experience to herself, thinking she was just delusional from lack of sleep


	9. Caution

Daryl woke up and reached his hand over to caress Michonne's shoulder but she wasn't in bed. After taking a shower he walked into the living room and saw her by the stove.

"Hey" He sat on the stool by the countertop. She put a piece of ham in the skillet.

"I made you breakfast" She gave him a plate with ham, scrambled eggs and hash with a cup of orange juice. He was happy that he'll be able to taste her cooking for the first time but felt bad about her going out of her way to feed him. She sat across from Daryl and happily watched him chow down. He wanted to keep the mood cordial between them but had to ask her about yesterday.

"What happened after I left?"

"The usual, things got heated, we exchanged some words then parted ways" She took a sip of juice. He understood it would still take time for her to let go of him but didn't want her getting use to the routine of being dragged down by Rick.

"You don't need to be around him, let him live with his mistakes"

"We're not friends anymore. I'm tired of feeling depressed. Our relationship is the only thing I wanna focus on" He looked up at her. She seemed sad about losing Rick's friendship but only time would tell.

Once Daryl left she went to the laundry room to get her clothes from the dryer. Looking through the basket she noticed a pair of her underwear were missing. She wanted to say they were somewhere in her dresser but thought about the experience she had last night. Before she can deeply recollect there was a knock at the door, she remembered asking Sasha to come over before work to catch up.

XXX

Rick cleaned around the house a little to clear his head. Hearing a knock on the door he looked through the blinds and saw Pete standing there. Even though he felt slightly uneasy he let him in.

"Hey, i was having a beer and thought I bring you one" He handed him a bottle but Rick didn't take it.

"Nah, I'm good"

"Come on don't tell me you're still on duty"

"Kind of always am" Pete leaned against the wall.

"You were drinking at Deanna's party, not as much as that girl with the dreads. What was her name again...Michonne. I'm surprised a cutie like her hold a couple down" Rick glared at him. Pete subtly cleared his throat.

"So, what's her story?"

"I don't know her that well" Rick questioned his motives and had to toy around with his mind to avoid giving up any information about her. Pete took another sip of his beer. He knew Rick was lying, considering he knows more about him and Michonne than he should.

"Hmm, I thought you'd be the first to snatch her up. Guess you missed your chance with a beautiful woman since your married right?" Pete gently patted his shoulder. Rick could feel his blood boiling, hearing him go on about Michonne. He wanted to shut him up but couldn't show his true intention, so he subtly shook it off.

"No, I was married"

"...It looks like we haven't lost anything but believe me we have" Rick nodded his head. Things were becoming awkwardly silent between them. Pete walked over to him and put his hand on his shoulder.

"Let's be friends man" He took another sip of beer and walked out of the house without giving him a second look. When Rick closed the door he looked out the window to see where he was going. Once he was out view he sat down on the couch to think. Even though Pete was a doctor something was still off about him. He remembered Michonne and him weren't speaking to each other anymore, but still felt she was his responsibility and wanted to look out for her.

XXX

Pete walked down the street and seen Michonne working out on the grass. He hid behind one of the houses to get a better look. He watched her do a couple of push ups, feeling blood rushing through his body at the sight of her toned body. He couldn't believe Rick didn't keep this one around. Once she got up off the ground he approached her with friendly mindset.

"Hi Michonne" She nearly jumped out of her skin, hearing his voice.

"What do you want" He loved her feisty attitude.

"Woah I come in peace" He chuckled "I looked at the stock of medicine and were running low on antibiotics. I like to go on these little runs to scrounge up more" She put her arm on the wall.

"Why can't Jessie go with you?" She knew Jessie was his wife.

"If I went with her I'd be dead, hasn't killed a walker a day in her life. I need someone strong, someone who knows what it's like to fight out there" He eyed her up and down, admiring her sun kissed skin.

"Sorry I can't go" She walked past him.

"My youngest son is sick" She stopped "With your help I'll be able to bring back a lot more supplies, enough for him and the people here. Please"

Not being able bare the thought of a child getting sicker she nodded in agreement to go. Michonne grabbed her sword and met Pete back at the car.

"Do you know where this place is?" She packed extra gear in the trunk.

"It's a pharmacy a couple miles from here. There were too many walkers around for me to get into the entrance"

During the ride Pete occasionally glanced over at Michonne a few times. He tried asking her a few personal questions but she refused to answer. Pulling up a few feet away from the pharmacy they took cover by a tree to look for walkers.

"There's a couple of them by the entrance, I can take them out" She said, pulling her sword out.

Pete tried to subtly inhale more of her sweet scent but she quickly move to another tree. As she moved in to take out the walkers by the entrance he stabbed a few coming from the side of the building. After checking around for more walkers he met her back at the front entrance.

"The door only opens from the inside. I can lift you up to the window" She looked at him.

"No, I got it. Just wait here"

He watched her climb up the dumpster and pull herself up on the banister, taken aback by her strength. He pulled a note out of his pocket supposedly containing a list of medicines they were low on. Once she opened the door they agreed to go separate ways to look for medicine. After looking around he noticed a small cabinet on the side of the room that looked untouched. It contained syringes, and a couple of unnamed vials. Confusion, light headedness and fatigue was listed on one of the bottles.

"Did you find anything?" Michonne asked, holding a bag of assorted medicine.

"Just stuff for the flu" He secretly hid the syringes and vials in his bag.

Arriving back to Alexandria Michonne gathered her things from the trunk and handed him the bag of Medicine. He held out a couple boxes of protein bars from the pharmacy.

"Listen, the people in your group might not appreciate everything you do or the sacrifices you've made but I do. And I would like to get to know you better, maybe over coffee?" She took the boxes from him.

"Thanks" She walked away. Enjoying the view of her backside he came to the realization that this was one tough chick to crack, but he's up for the challenge.

* * *

**Do you think Pete was lying about his son being sick?**


	10. Prelude

Carl got out of bed and went to Judith's crib. Seeing her roll around he knew she was hungry. He picked her up and walked to the kitchen to make her a bottle. Since Michonne and Rick stopped speaking to each other she stopped coming over the house which left him feeling abandoned again. He didn't know where his father and her stood, but he still wanted to keep his bond with her strong. From the corner of his eye he seen Jessie emerge from the bedroom.

"Hi Carl" She smiled at him but he didn't acknowledge her. She tried to rub the baby's head but Judith quickly started crying.

"Don't touch her" He glared at her.

"Carl" Rick closed the bedroom door behind him. He walked up to Carl and held Judith in his arms to calm her down. After rocking her he handed the baby back to him. He felt sick to his stomach seeing his dad's arm around Jessie. He rolled his eyes, frustrated at how comfortable she acting around them and how his dad doesn't seem to care about Michonne anymore.

"I'm going for a walk" He quickly walked away, slamming the door behind him.

Walking down the street he enjoyed the feeling of the sun beaming down on him. At one of the houses he noticed Pete sitting on pouch staring at something in his hand; He couldn't tell what it was. He put the scrunched purple garment up to his nose and sniffed it. Carl had a hunch and felt something wasn't right with that guy. He walked up to Michonne's house and knocked on the door.

"Hey Carl" Judith reached her arms out for her.

"Can you look after her for a while there's something I gotta do" Carl handed the baby to her. She sensed a distinct look on his face.

"Is something bothering you?"

"No everything's cool" He reassured. Daryl walked up to Michonne and gave her a kiss. Carl watch how the two of them interacted with each other along with the baby. It temporarily put a smile on his face, knowing that he's taking care of her.

Carl carefully hid behind one of the house to watch Pete's movements. When he went inside he waited to see if anyone else was coming then snuck up to the window and crotched down. He heard him talking to someone.

"Man that woman is something else, she strong, beautiful, my type of woman. She's got a nice tight backside too" Pete said.

"You know she's dating someone" A man said.

"I'm not worried about him. I know the type of things she needs. When I get her alone she'll feel a real man inside her for once." He pulled out the purple garment from his pocket and deeply inhaled.

"What is... You're sick" The man said.

Carl felt puzzled about who they were talking about. Judging by his actions and how he talked he sensed Pete would become a problem down the line; he needed to figure out his next move. He quickly tried to make his way to the armoury to retrieve his weapon but Ron approached him out of the blue.

"Hey I've looked everywhere for you. I found a stack of comics books in one of the houses" He handed him one. Carl distinctively look at the armory from the corner of his eye. He will keep his guard up for now until he figures out another plan.

"Yeah sure"

XXX

Pete was standing outside watching the block. From a distance he seen Michonne loading up supplies. He hasn't seen to here since their last run and knowing her schedule this was the perfect time to talk. He walked up to the side of the van, taking in the view.

"Hey Michonne"

"Hi" She continued to clean her gun. He took notice of her new outfit, mainly her leather pants.

"You look beautiful without your headband" She ignored his compliment.

"I like the new outfit, makes you look more innocent" He smiled. She closed the doors and rested her elbow on the door.

"Come on don't look at me like that. We're friends" He said.

"More like an acquaintance" Pete chuckled at her remark and locked eyes with her.

"I know you have some time before you leave. Have some coffee with me" She folded her arms.

"Why?"

"It's French Vanilla flavor and I know those protein bars aren't giving you enough energy"

She was slightly annoyed with him but still agreed to his invite, for only ten minutes. Once they got to his house Pete went to the kitchen and Michonne sat down on the couch. Looking around all the picture frames were face down. He sat beside her and handed her a cup, adding a bit of cream and sugar. He felt turned on by the soft expression on her face as she took a sip.

"Why do you wanna know so much about me?" She asked.

"You take care of everyone else's needs and you never take time out for yourself. And that guy Rick is an arrogant bastard who doesn't appreciate anybody, not even his kids. Just hate to see a pretty woman being taking advantage of"

"He loves his kids more than anything" She took another sip.

"And has no love for the one woman who sacrifice herself to keep him safe, that's selfish"

"You have your own marriage to worry about" She wanted to change the subject. Michonne had mixed feelings about what he said about Rick but did agree she has hate towards him. She couldn't go back to being the woman with a broken heart.

"I'm not in love with her and we haven't been for some time. A few weeks ago I found a woman who's more deserving of me" She noticed him looking at her a certain way. This was a sign that things were getting too personal.

"Thanks for the coffee but I have to leave" She stood up.

"Wish we had more time" He grabbed a box of honey buns from the table.

"Take these, in case you get hungry" She thanked him and he walked her to the door.

"I don't get a hug, or a kiss, anything" He said.

"Bye Pete" She gave him a wave instead. Once she left he cleaned up the table and notice a bit of coffee left in her cup. He ran the rim of the cup down the tip of his tongue to taste her saliva.

"Mmmm, Sweet molasses" He sipped the last bit of coffee.

XXX

After Carl finished his dinner he sat on the couch and looked out the window. It was dark outside but there was some moonlight coming from the east. He looked back and saw his dad playing with Judith. He smiled, hoping his dad realized now that his family needs him. But then again this might just be temporary as usual. Opening the blinds he noticed some movement outside; he could tell it's a person. When the figure started going further out view it was time to leave.

"Where you going?" Rick asked.

"Out. Just worry about Judith, she needs you" He closed the door behind him.

Sticking close to the shadows he ran down the sidewalk to catch up with the unknown person. He stopped at the end of block to scope it out. After the figure disappeared out of view again he walked down the street and carefully looked for anything suspicious. He approached the side of a house and saw Pete looking through the window; Carl's heart dropped when he realized this was Daryl and Michonne's house.

"What are you doing?" He asked. Pete walked away from the window.

"You're Rick's son" He chuckled "You should learn to mind your own business"

"I know who you're after. I suggest you stay away from this house" Carl stood his ground.

"Is that a threat" He walked closer to him.

"You heard me" Before Carl could walk away he grabbed his arm.

"Tell anyone, and I'll bury your dad" He pushed him to the side and walked away.

* * *

** Is Carl gonna tell someone or handle this situation on his own?**


	11. Reality

Early in the morning Carl sat up on the couch and looked out the window for the third time. He didn't sleep well due to his encounter with Pete the other night. The only thing that mattered now was to protect Michonne, even if that meant giving up sleep. After changing Judith's diaper Rick walked into the living room and seen Carl yawning and rubbing his eyes.

"Carl, you only slept for two hours." He said.

"Michonne's in trouble and I'm not gonna let anything happen to her. It's not like it matters to you" Rick sat on the couch and forced Carl to make eye contact.

"That's not true. We have our issues, that's my fault. I miss her just as much as you do. There's not a day that goes by that I don't think about her and how she's doing. But you have to trust me that I'll fix things"

"You two haven't spoken to each other for weeks. If you love her so much why haven't you made an effort to repair your relationship? She still hurting dad and that alone hurts me the most. You know she doesn't deserve that. I want things to go back to the way they were. If your not willing to put your life on the line for Michonne then I will"

Listening to his sons words Rick felt ashamed of himself. This whole time he lost site of what truly mattered; his family.

"You say someone's trying to hurt her, is it Pete?"

"...Yeah"

Rick patted him on the shoulder and reassured him that he'll handle it. After hearing the details about his sons encounter with him was the last straw, this couldn't go on any longer. He walked outside and planned to confront Pete later in the day. Rick figured this would be the first step to make things right, even if Michonne didn't want his help. Carol noticed him coming down the block and approached him. They haven't talked about their alliance for a while.

"Sam came up to me earlier. Pete hit her again. Earlier he asked for a gun"

"You're concerned about Jessie?"

"It's Pete, I don't care much for him"

"Carl mentioned a run in he had with Pete and he thinks he might try to hurt Michonne"

"Things have gotten out of hand, you know what needs to be done" She gave him the smaller revolver in trade for his original pick.

"Just keep the act up. I'll confront Pete later after I talk to Deanna" She nodded her head. She hope Rick would finally get his priorities straight and cut things off with Jessie.

"And Michonne?"

"I got her. Just keep those guns, we might need em" He walked off the porch.

XXX

Daryl and Michonne were lying down in bed trying to wake up. Gathering some energy she finally got out of bed and took a shower. As Daryl freshened up he though about never being home during the day. Him and Aaron went out everyday to find people but always end up bringing no one back. He met her in the kitchen to have some cereal. He wanted to bring up the topic of her possibly staying home for a few hours but he couldn't get enough of seeing her smile. Suddenly there was a knock at the door.

"What's up Carl, I thought we were suppose to meet later on" She ate more of her cereal.

"I know, but this is important" She closed the door and sat on the porch with him. She offered him some of her cinnamon squares which he happily accepted. She waited for a couple of minutes to pass by before asking Carl a question that's been crossing her mind.

"Does Jessie live with you guys?"

"No, If she did I would of kicked her out myself and slam the door behind her. She just visits in the mornings for " She was relieved but at the same time pissed off. Not wanting to think about it anymore she changed the subject.

"You look like you haven't slept, what's going on?"

"Last night, i seen Pete peeking through your window. He said he was gonna hurt my dad but I think he's really after you. I'm just trying to look out for you"

"Listen, i appreciate what you're trying to do but I don't want you to lose sleep over this. I can handle this, just take care of Judith." He understood where she came from and how she could handle her own but he wasn't gonna let this situation go that easily.

"I will" He put his bowl down and gave her a quick hug.

"Carl, I'm not playing" He nodded and continued to walk.

Michonne got up and went back into the house. Her talk with Carl has her thinking about how she might have gotten comfortable too soon. She met Daryl back in the kitchen to talk. He explained how he overheard what Carl said and blamed himself because he hasn't been home lately. She knew both of them have been occupied with their jobs lately and couldn't deny they needed some alone time. She agreed to stay behind but wanted to talk to Glenn first to make sure they would be okay going without her.

"It's time to leave Daryl" Aaron said. Daryl went to the door but didn't open it.

"Tell Deanna I'm staying home"

"Alright but that'll be double shifts for tomorrow then"

"I don't care" He looked back at Michonne and smiled.

XXX

Later in the day Rick made the walk to Jessie's house. He noticed how everyone was just sitting around calm like everything was normal. After his conversation with Deanna he knew that Alexandria would soon fall apart. Jessie was caught off guard when Rick unexpectedly showed up.

"Rick"

"Just hear me out. Sam asked for a gun to protect you" She didn't know what to say.

"You can't keep ignoring this. He's hurting you. It's not gonna go away because you want it to that's how people die. You have to fight, now or never. I can help you and your kids stay safe, just say yes"

She admitted to herself that she desperately needed Rick's help to keep her and the kids safe, but at the same time felt conflicted about giving up on Pete.

"...Yes" She wiped her eyes, feeling a little more at ease.

" Would you do this for someone else?" She asked.

"Yes I would"

"What about me and you?" Before he could respond Pete entered the room and saw Jessie near Rick.

"What are you doing here? I'm gonna have to ask you to leave" He asked him. Rick glared at him.

"No... you need to leave" She said as he approached her.

"What did you say to me? What the hell have you been doing" He shouted.

"Pete we're gonna leave now" Rick said.

"You come into my house, try to put stuff into her head " Pete stepped closer to him.

"I advise you to step back" He said aggressively.

"You actually think you have a say in anything that goes on here" He paused for a second.

"I know what this is all about, you're mad because I'm spending time with Michonne. Man she has the most incredible body, I watch her work out almost everyday. You never did tell me she was flexible"

"What did you say?" Rick stepped closer.

"Woah officer, she's not your woman anymore considering you've been sleeping with my wife; Yeah I knew all about it. You left Michonne all alone and now she's friends with me. I listen to her, give her extra food, Whatever she needs I'll make sure I'm there since that's what a man does"

"Stay the hell away from her" He said.

"Early in the morning she'd cook you and the kids breakfast, help change the baby. Then you kiss each other goodbye. You would patrol the streets while she hung out with Maggie and the others. Late in the night after everyone's asleep you two would take a shower together, rubbing soap on her back, kissing her shoulder. Does that sound about right?" Rick was close to blacking out. Everything that's happened was hitting him all at once. He realized Pete's been spying on the group since they've been here.

"I see you couldn't handle a woman like her. That biker friend of yours doesn't know what he's doing. It'll only be a matter of time before I can show her how a real man can fuck, that's what you called right? A slut" Rick clenched his fist tighter.

"You and your group have been ruining our town" Pete walked over to the fireplace and starts talking to himself.

"He won't hurt you again, and I'll make sure of that"

He quickly swung his fist towards Rick, missing by an inch. He grabbed his hand and punched him in the face. Pete punched him with his free hand and pushed him against the wall.

"You can't have her" He shouted, smashing Rick's head into the wall. Rick kicked him in the knee and pushed him off. Pete landed another punch and ran to the door to grab a piece of glass from the broken frame. Rick quickly tackled him, causing both of them to crash through the door.

Carol heard the loud thud and quickly ran towards the scene, Sam immediately hid behind her. Pete had Rick on the ground and squeezed his throat tightly. From the corner of Rick's eye he saw Jessie try to pull him off. When he backhand her Rick punched him in the stomach and forced him onto the ground. His mind went numb as he continued to choke Pete. Everything that's happened up to this point hit him all at once, he failed his group and most importantly his family. A red ballon floating up in the air caught his attention. Things are going to change immediately, starting with himself. Suddenly he snapped back into reality.

"Rick stop" Deanna said.

"Go near Michonne or my son again and I'll kill you"

"Damn it Rick I said stop"

"Or what" He pulled out his gun from inside his jacket.

"Put the gun down" She said.

"You still don't understand. Everyone of you think you know what you're doing but you don't. You're way of doing things is done... Starting now we're gonna control who lives here"

"That's never been more clear to me than it is right now"

"You mean me?" He chuckled "Your way of doing things are gonna get people killed and destroy this place. You have to fight or else you will die. I'm not gonna stand by and let you ruin this place. I'm not gonna stand by-"

Out of the blue Michonne quickly punched Rick on the back of his head. Deanna took into account how many of his group members have taken control so far, she didn't want to accept that he could be right. Carol and a few other group members surrounded Rick's unconscious body, trying to figure out the next move.


End file.
